Beware! FSCoptions is an offshore broker! Your investment may be at risk.

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FSCoptions tries to portray itself as an established broker worth trusting with your money. But fact-checking reveals just the opposite – this is an online scam that has already been detected by financial regulators. Let’s take a detailed look at how you can identify such scams.

FSCoptions Regulation and safety of funds

Guaranteed FundsSegregated AccountsNegative balance protection
FSCoptions
UK regulated brokers£85 000YesYes
EU regulated brokers€20 000YesYes
AU regulated brokersNoYesYes
US regulted brokersYesYesNo

Legitimate forex brokers provide clear and detailed information about the legal entity that owns and operates them, where it is based, what licences it has and which regulators oversee its activities. Lack of such details or improper presentation of them are always a red flag that we are probably dealing with a scam.

We find no concrete information on the homepage of this website except a statement that the broker is based in the UK, but no specific address is given.

According to the text of the Terms and Conditions, a company called FSCoptions Trading Ltd is behind the broker. But a check of the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)  register reveals not a licence but a warning that this website is a scam.

If you want to trade on financial markets without being scammed, you can turn to some of the legitimate brokers that actually operate from established financial hubs like the UK. These brokers have to meet stringent requirements for financial stability and transparency of operations imposed by the FCA.

They must provide clients with negative balance protection and to participate in a guarantee fund that covers up to GBP 85,000 of a client’s investment should the broker go into insolvency. These brokers are also required to keep their clients’ money segregated from their own operating funds in separate bank accounts.

FSCoptions Trading software

Analytical toolsAuto tradingCustom indicatorsMobile apps
FSCoptions platform
MT430+ indicatorsAndroid and iOS
MT550+ indicatorsAndroid and iOS
cTrader40+ indicatorsAndroid and iOS

Registering an account gives us access to a very rudimentary web-based trading platform that lacks even basic features like placing a pending order. it could be said that this is more of an imitation than a functioning trading software. And it definitely is not the cTrade platform advertised on the website.

If you use the services of a licensed broker, you will get the opportunity to use established software with advanced features and versions for all types of devices and operating systems. The most widely used trading platforms in the industry are MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5).

These platforms have established themselves as industry standard because they offer a wide range of features, including a variety of options for customization, multiple account usage, designing and implementing custom scripts for automated trading and backtesting trade strategies.

FSCoptions Trading instruments

CurrencyStocksIndicesCryptoCommodities
FSCoptions
XMYesYesYesYesYes
FBSYesYesYesYesYes
FXTMYesYesYesYesYes

FSCoptions advertises that it offers trading in all asset classes, including cryptocurrencies. This is also evidence that FSCoptions is not what it claims to be because the FCA prohibits trading in crypto derivatives.

FSCoptions Spreads and cost of trading

FSCoptionsXMFBSFXTM
Spread EURUSD01.711.1
Spread GBPUSD01.31.21.4
Spread USDJPY01.31.21.4

Legitimate forex brokers offer a variety of trading account types tailored to the needs of clients with different capital and investment intentions. These brokers also provide clear and detailed information on trading parameters – leverage, spread, commissions, order execution method, etc.

On the FSCoptions website, we see a list of trading account types, but their descriptions lack information on the basic parameters, including the price paid by the trader. The trading platform shows a zero spread, which conveys that FSCoptions charges a commission. But the amount of this commission is not specified.

FSCoptions Maximum leverage

ForexStocksCryptoGoldIndices
FSCoptionsNot specifiedNot specifiedNot specifiedNot specifiedNot specified
UK regulated brokers30:15:110:110:1
EU regulated brokers30:15:12:110:110:1
AU regulated brokers30:15:12:110:110:1
US regulated brokers50:1

High leverage creates the opportunity for more significant profit, but correspondingly increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses. All leading regulators therefore restrict leverage for retail traders.

Regulated brokers offer higher leverage only to professional clients who must meet very high standards for capital and experience and forgo the guarantees enjoyed by retail traders.

If you don’t qualify as a professional trader but are willing to take the risk of high-leverage trading, the most viable option is to use the services of an offshore affiliate of an established brand.

FSCoptions Deposit and withdrawal methods

Deposit timeWithdrawal timePrice
Bank wire2-5 business days2-5 business days$25+
Credit cardInstant24 hoursNot specified
Crypto24 hours24 hoursFee depends on crypto

In the deposit menu we see options for cryptocurrencies, wire transfer to a South African bank account and credit cards.

Legitimate brokers typically offer clients a wide choice of transparent payment methods, including established e-wallets such as PayPal, Skrill or Neteller

FSCoptions Minimum deposit

FSCoptionsXMFBSFXTM
Minimum deposit$500$5$10$5

FSCoptions requires a minimum deposit of 500 USD. Leading brands offer Micro and Cent accounts to novice traders with a much lower minimum deposit.

FSCoptions Withdrawal requirements

Trading volumeFee/Tax on withdrawalMinimum withdrawal
FSCoptionsNot specifiedNot specifiedNot specified
UK regulated brokersNoNoNo
EU regulated brokersNoNoNo
AU regulated brokersNoNoNo
US regulated brokersNoNoNo

FSCoptions does not provide clear information on fees and withdrawal conditions. But experience shows that we can expect high hidden fees and other unpleasant surprises from such a shady website.

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